Gaza hostages won’t be released before Friday

Eyewitness tells NBC News he saw Al-Shifa Hospital director’s arrest

TEL AVIV — A doctor at the Al-Shifa Hospital told NBC News today he saw the director of the medical complex being arrested along with several other members of staff.

Dr. Khaled Abu Samra said he saw “dozens” of bodies lying in the streets “and no one could bury them,” as he was evacuated from the facility in the north of the Gaza Strip. He added that he saw Dr. Muhammad Abu Salamiya being arrested along with other “medical workers and personnel.”

Separately, a spokesperson for the Gaza health ministry told NBC News he had been arrested.

Israeli officials later confirmed he had been arrested.

Deal between Israel and Hamas ‘remains agreed,’ White House says

Kelly O’Donnell

WASHINGTON — The hostage deal between Israel and Hamas “remains agreed,” the National Security Council said in a statement today, despite the apparent delay in the start of the cease-fire between Israel and the militant group.

“The deal was agreed and remains agreed,” the spokesperson said. “The parties are working out final logistical details, particularly for the first day of implementation.”

The spokesperson added that the deal “is on track and we are hopeful that implementation will begin on Friday morning.”

The statement came after Israel said no hostages held in Gaza will be released before tomorrow, while the start of the four-day pause in fighting and the release of 150 Palestinians from Israeli jails also appeared delayed.

Indonesian Hospital in Gaza evacuated

The Indonesian Hospital in Gaza has been evacuated, the head of the aid group which runs it said today.

Sarbini Abdul Murad, the chief presidium of the Medical Emergency Rescue Committee, told Al Jazeera that the hospital was “now empty, and our volunteers have been moved to a school near the European Hospital in Rafah.”

Doctors and the wounded had also been moved to the facility in the south of the enclave, he said.

The move came after heavy fighting and bombardment in northern Gaza where the Indonesian Hospital is based.

Gaza faces outbreak of waterborne diseases, UNRWA chief says

Gaza is on the brink of an outbreak of waterborne diseases, Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency said today during a visit to southern Gaza.

In a separate post on X yesterday, Lazzarini said the sewage was “flooding” in the enclave and people were wearing the same clothes since the war broke out on Oct 7.

Israel will not end war once cease-fire expires, IDF chief of staff says

The war with Hamas will not end once the cease-fire with the militant group expires, the chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces said today.

“We are not ending the war,” Herzi Halevi told soldiers inside the Gaza Strip, adding that Israel would continue until it achieves victory.

“We are trying to connect the goals of the war, so that the pressure from the ground operation brings about the ability to also achieve the goal of this war,” he said.

Israeli military says it struck 300 Hamas targets yesterday

Israel struck 300 Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip, the Israel Defense Forces said today, with some of the targets being Hamas squads which Israel targeted using drones.

Their forces also located operational headquarters as well as tunnels and warehouses, the IDF said in a post on X, adding they had found a tunnel shaft under a mosque.

NBC News has not verified these claims.

Who are the Houthis, and how could their attacks escalate the war?

As the war between Israel and Hamas continues, Yemen’s Houthi rebels hijacked a ship in the Red Sea and took dozens of people hostage. The U.S. is calling for their immediate release.

U.S. says warships intercept attack drones from Yemen

The U.S. warship Thomas Hudner shot down multiple attack drones in the Red Sea that were launched from Yemen, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said.

The warship was on patrol in the area, it added, with no injuries sustained.

Yemeni Armed Forces said yesterday on Telegram that they were launching winged missiles at various Israeli targets.

Qatar says time for start of the pause in fighting announced soon

The time for the start of the four-day pause in fighting between Hamas and Israel will be announced “within the next few hours,” the Qatari foreign ministry said this morning.

“Work continues with both parties,” spokesperson Majed bin Mohammed Al Ansari said in a statement, so that a pause can be started rapidly and its adherence can be ensured.

Bombardment continues in southern Gaza

Israel arrests Al-Shifa Hospital director, Gaza health ministry says

TEL AVIV — Israel has arrested the director of the Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza, the health ministry there and Hamas said this morning.

Dr. Muhammad Abu Salamiya was arrested while moving with the wounded on the Salah Al-Din Street, health ministry spokesperson Ashraf Al-Qudra told NBC News, adding the ministry was unaware of how many other people were arrested.

Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip and carried out the Oct. 7 terror attack in Israel, said that Salamiya had been arrested along with a number of other medical personnel, calling it a “despicable act.” Israel has displayed what it says are evidence of hostages taken to the hospital and tunnels used by the militant group under the medical complex, which Hamas and doctors have denied.

The hospital was raided by Israeli forces last week and a number of wounded patients, including more than two dozen premature babies, have been evacuated. The street used by Salamiya is the one set up by Israel as the “humanitarian corridor” for those evacuating south.

NBC News has not verified the claims of Salamiya’s arrest and has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces for comment.

Hostage release delayed until tomorrow, Israel says

The release of hostages that was expected to begin today will not start until tomorrow at the earliest, Israeli national security director Tzachi Hanegbi said yesterday.

“The start of the release will take place according to the original agreement between the sides, and not before Friday,” he said in a statement.

It is unclear what caused the delay, and it was not clear if the pause in fighting would also be delayed.

U.N. says more than 1 million displaced Gazans sheltering at its facilities

Nearly 1,037,000 internally displaced persons are sheltering in 156 UNRWA camps across all five governorates of the Gaza Strip, including in the north, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency said.

The latest UNRWA report also indicates that nearly 1.7 million people have been displaced across the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7.

The situation of UNRWA refugee camps is dire: On average, around 220 people sheltering in UNRWA schools share a single toilet, and there is one shower unit for every 4,500 people in UNRWA shelters, according to the report.

Looking out over the rubble in Khan Younis

A man looks at the rubble of a house after an Israeli strike in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip.

Catch up with NBC News’ latest coverage of the war